Perennial Vegetables for sale September 2025

For sale in Australia perennial vegetables, heirloom vegetable seeds, edible herbs, organic berry plants, and a few non-edible plants and things.

Maintaining my for sale page wasn't working for me lately, updating it was causing confusion, so I am tying something different.  Each month I will update the list of what I have for sale that month. 

Photographs, binomial names, and descriptions of plants, and notes on how I grow them, can be found lower on this page.  

For Sale: September 2025 

Bare rooted plants $5 each (unless otherwise stated):

Skirret offsets 
Everlasting onions 
Babington leek (very low numbers)
Hokowase strawberry 
Pineberry strawberry 
Atilla alpine strawberry 
Jekkas thyme 
Spearmint 
100 yr old mint 
Willow herb
Vietnamese fish mint
Vietnamese coriander
Variegated water parsley
Green water parsley (more vigorous version of the variegated one)
Purple asparagus (small crowns)
Asparagus 'Precoce D'Argenteuil (small crowns)
Water cress
Sweet violet
Brahmi/water hyssop (Bacopa monnieri) 
Tiger nut/chufas (Cyperus esculentus) $5 for 5 tubers
Jerusalem artichoke $3 each
Duck potato $3 each
Chinese water chestnuts $3 (only a few this year)
Spider plant (variegated, green, or reverse variegated)  $3 each
Azolla  ($3 per scoop)

Ancient cultures:

Milk kefir grains  $5 
Kombucha  $5 

Vegetable Seeds:  $4 packet 

Immali corn
Giant heirloom tomato mix
Woolly Kate tomato
Superior coriander
Giant parsley
Purple hot mustard
Purple asparagus

Non edible things:

String of pearls plant $5
String of pearls cuttings $2
Candle mold (skep or owl) $10 each

Postage Prices: 

$12 for plants etc, or 
$3.50 if only buying seeds.  

To order anything from the above list: 

Please send me an email saying what plants/seeds you would like and I will reply with prices/payment methods.  My email address will need to remove the the spaces, put @ instead of the word 'at' and . in place of the word 'dot': 

damien_beaumont at yahoo dot com dot au

Immali corn

This list is only valid for September 2025.  After this date I will have another blog post with the plants and seeds that are for sale that month.  

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Below are short descriptions, binomial names, some pictures, and links to growing notes for some of the heirloom vegetable seeds, berry plants, and perennial vegetable plants, and other things I sometimes sell.  

The list above is what I have for sale this month.  If you see a plant listed below that is not in the list above, then I don't currently have them for sale.  I don't currently have all the plants listed below for sale.  

For a list of vegetable days to harvest from planting seed please click here.

For notes on how to grow perennial vegetables please visit here.    

 
I post plants on Monday or Tuesday after payment has cleared so they are not stuck in the post office over the weekend. 

While I grow everything organically, we are not certified organic and never will be (I do not use any of the organically certified poisons and fertilizers that most organic farms use and do not want to be associated with the use of such so-called “organic” poisons). 

No plants to Tasmania or Western Australia at this stage due to domestic quarantine.  

I can post seeds outside of Australia but only if you are convinced that they are allowed through your country's quarantine.  All prices are in Australian dollars and do not include postage.



Organic Perennial Vegetables – plant once, harvest forever!
 

Yacon crowns (Smallanthus sonchifolius formerly Polymnia sonchifolia) is a sweet and crunchy root vegetable, I have never met a child who dislikes yacon!  They are a high source of inulin (not insulin), they are sweet and crunchy yet still fine to be eaten by diabetics, great fodder for poultry, pigs and ruminants, and a great permaculture plant.   





Everlasting Onion (Allium cepa perutile) grows like a spring onion but does not often produce viable seed, reproduces quickly by splitting in half.  Will also grow a small bulb similar to a French shallot in some climates.  This is possibly one of the most productive and easiest to grow perennial vegetables.  One of the best permaculture vegetables.  Very easy to grow, you will never have to buy spring onions or shallots ever again!  

Babington's Leek (Allium ampeloprasum var. babingtonii)  This is an extremely rare and fun perennial vegetable to grow.  Similar to a tree onion it grows many bulbils on the flower stalk instead of producing seed.  It is used in the same way and has the same taste as a regular leek.  This will prove to be a talking point in any garden and a great heirloom to pass on to your kids.  Extremely hardy and productive but for some reason it is so rare that it is almost extinct.  Please read my Babington's leek growing notes prior to ordering  

 
Perennial Leek (Allium ampeloprasum) rare and hard to find but one of the best plants for home growers.  These grow and taste like regular leek but instead of growing viable seed they reproduce by sending up numerous babies from their base.  Much faster and easier than growing from seed.  If hot and dry over summer they can die down to bulbs.  These are hardy once established and incredibly productive 







Giant Russian Garlic (botanically this is a type of leek and not a true garlic Allium amperoprasum) these easy to grow plants are a mild tasting garlic and grow HUGE.  Each individual clove can be as large as a ping pong ball and a bulb made of 5 or so individual cloves can be larger than your fist.  They grow well where other garlic will not survive.  They grow a little different to regular garlic   

Jerusalem Artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus) a massively productive low maintenance vegetable that is high in inulin.  Can be eaten raw or cooked and is used in any way that you would use a potato.  Very productive, one small tuber fragment can produce well over 1kg!  When grown in good soil and watered occasionally each plant will produce over 3kg of tubers.  Great food for people, pigs, poultry, sheep, guinea pigs etc.   



QLD arrowroot (Canna edulis) edible canna, looks similar to a lush banana plant but grows edible tubers underground.  Can be eaten raw, used in many ways that potato is used, or can be used to make arrowroot starch.  Great mulch, excellent high protein forage for poultry, sheep, cattle, pigs, guinea pigs etc.  Frost kills the tops off but the plant will survive and be ready to grow again in spring.  Very beautiful and productive. 



Garlic chives (Allium tuberosum) these are very hardy plants that can be grown from seed as well as from dividing existing plants.  Both the leaves and the flowers are useful in cooking.  Planted near fruit tree saplings it is said to deter rabbits and some insect pests.  Flowers attract bees and other beneficial insects  

Onion Chives (Allium schoenoprasum) the smallest species of edible onions. Great perennial vegetable, looks amazing, attracts beneficial insects, repels some pests, has a mild onion taste that does not overpower meas.  Most people eat the green leaves and let the bulbs continue to grow.  They flower each year but many people remove flowers to help the plants stay strong.  








  
Tree onion, aka topsetting onions, aka Egyptian walking onion (Allium × proliferum, formerly Allium cepa var proliferum) One of the very few hybrids that I grow, it is a stable hybrid dating back to the 1850s that is worth having around.  Bizarre looking plant grows a golf ball sized onion that divides underground then grows tiny onions instead of seed on the flower stalk.  Sometimes a flower stalk will have a tiny onion with its own flower stalk with tiny onions on that and you end up with three or four levels on the one plant.  These flower stalks bend under the weight of all the onions allowing the plant to “walk”.  These were very common once and are now rare and hard to find  
 

Chinese Water Chestnut (Eleocharis dulcis) another extremely productive perennial vegetable.  The more soil they have the more productive they are, but they are productive even in small 10 liter buckets or larger ice cream containers.  Excellent permaculture vegetable which provides large amounts of straw.  Easily grown in buckets, ponds, containers etc.  Very beautiful and ornamental looking as well as producing a lot of food.   






Chinese Artichoke (Stachys affinis) extremely rare and sought after perennial root vegetable.  Tubers form into a fascinating spiral sea shell shape and are a shiny pearl colour.  Crunchy and delicately sweet, eaten raw or cooked.  Eat the large tubers and replant smaller ones.  Best grown in containers as it may spread aggressively.  For sale normally late winter but occasionally other times too   

Duck Potato (Saggitaria hybrid) also known as arrowhead, wapato, swan potato and a host of other names.  It is an attractive edible aquatic perennial vegetable similar to water chestnuts but better suited to cooler climates.  This particular one does not flower which means that is poses no weed threat  

Skirret (Sium sisarum) very rare, endangered, and ancient perennial root vegetable which is very simple to grow.  Sweet roots taste like a delicious sweet potato or parsnip but far better.  Used in any dish that calls for potato, carrot or parsnip.  The celery tasting leaves can be added to salads and the seeds are edible but it is the sweet roots that are the main crop here.  This is the most delicious roasted vegetable ever.  Flowers attract many beneficial insects to your garden   

Horseradish (Armoracia rusticana) Perennial vegetable mostly grown for its long roots.  The leaves are also edible and spicy and good if eaten when young.  Plant in a pot as it can be a little invasive if planted in the garden.  Flowers under the right conditions and attracts beneficial insects.   

Duckweed (Lemna sp most likely Lemna minor) is a free floating plant, it is one of the smallest flowering plants in the world.  I have grown this continuously and moved it with me for the past 20 or so years and have never actually seen the flowers.  It grows very fast and reproduces mostly by division.  Can be used to efficiently clean water, as animal food, in aquariums, and can be eaten raw by people if you are certain there are no water snails.  It has a mild taste, good levels of many important nutrients and is high in protein  

Azolla (most likely Azolla pinnata) also known as mosquito fern, fairy moss, and a few other cute names, is a free floating water fern.  It sequesters nitrogen from the atmosphere and can be used as living mulch, biofertiliser, animal feed, human food, water cleanser, mosquito control etc.  This has high percentage of protein and is readily eaten by poultry and fish.  It grows fast and reproduces by division or spores and doubles every day under ideal conditions   

Saffron (Crocus sativus) corms.  Saffron is a spice rather than a vegetable, it is often claimed to be the world's most expensive spice.  Saffron is really simple to grow and organic home grown saffron is heavenly.  I won't guarantee that they will flower this year, but the corms are flowering size and this size always flowers for me.  Corms will divide each year giving you a larger harvest each year.  Plant corms far deeper than you think, these little corms need to be 15cm to 20cm deep to flower well!  Frosts in winter and a hot summer induce flowering   

Asparagus 'unnamed green', this is a good producer of tall green spears.  This is a hardy variety that is a real survivor.  This year they were left to fend for themselves as I had no water and they still grew well.  

Asparagus 'Precoce D'Argenteuil' (also called 'Early Argenteuil'), the history of this fast growing gourmet heirloom variety is rather obscure and vague, some sources state it was developed in the 1700’s, others claim it was developed as late as 1885.  Produces fat flavoursome spears that are green tipped with pink to purple.  This is likely to be the best tasting green variety you will ever eat, I have heard it described as ‘delicacy incarnate’.  

Asparagus 'Connover's Colossal' is an heirloom variety released in the 1860’s or sometime before that. Known for producing consistently large crops of very thick green spears. This variety was produced commercially until replaced by 'Mary Washington'.  Produces fat spears and has one of the largest crops of any heirloom variety.  







Asparagus 'Mary Washington' was released around 1919 and were the standard for both commercial and home grown asparagus for many years. A reliable producer of numerous high quality spears. In my experience they don’t produce spears as thick or as tasty as other heirloom varieties, but they are usually thicker, longer, and better tasting than modern hybrids.  

Asparagus 'Purple Passion' was originally bred in California and is the progeny of Violeta d’ Albinga. They are high in antioxidants and are said to have a fruity flavour, low fiber, and to be 20% higher in sugars. To me they seem sweeter than green varieties, and they do produce delightful fat spears that are tender and delicate, but can have a lower yield.  

Spider plant (Chlorophytum comosum) is commonly grown as an ornamental, but the leave and roots are both edible.  This is the hardy variegated form with white along the mid line of the leaf and green on the outside.  Tolerates low light, poor soil, and dry conditions.  Grows white flowers and cute little baby plants on long stolons that can dangle from the mother plant and look very attractive.  Perfect for hanging baskets and a great office plant.  Spider plant survives a lot of neglect but should be protected from frost.  The price is low because I am selling small bare rooted plants

Tiger nut (Cyperus esculentus), also called chufa, or earth almond.  Grows over the warmer months, then dies down to edible tubers over winter.  Productivity increases significantly with increasing water.  Can be eaten raw, dried, cooked, turned into 'milk', or used as fishing bait.  In my garden it does not flower or set seed, I think it is best grown in pots as it is so productive it has weed potential  

Organic Heirloom Vegetable Seeds - most are not perennial but it is certainly worth growing these.

 

Immali Corn (Zea mays) a beautiful and delicious coloured sweet corn.  I have created this amazing variety myself, the colours are not changed during cooking (we ate the cob in the photo).  Produces 2 to 6 cobs of coloured sweet corn per plant.  This is high in anthocyanin, antioxidants and vitamins.  Why grow yellow corn when this is prettier, tastier, and healthier for you!  Corn will cross pollinate with other varieties of corn so you may have some yellow seeds if someone is growing yellow corn near by   

Giant Heirloom Tomatoes (Lycopersicon esculentum) a mix of seeds containing both "Julia Child" and "Giant Siberian Pink" (known in Russian as: Sibirskiy Velikan Rozovyi).  They are both delicious and large tomatoes.  'Julia Child' grows regular leaf and 'Giant Siberian Pink' grows potato leaf so you can tell from a young age which seedlings are which.  These are open pollinated varieties that are both indeterminate. 

Angora 82 tomato small plant which grows to about 1 foot tall, may or may not be dwarf, very productive with about 20 flowers per truss.  Small, red, round tomatoes which taste really nice.  This plant gave a large yield very early, has regular leaf and appeared to be determinate but kept putting out occasional new branches with flowers until the frosts.  

Igloo tomato, these are sturdy, stocky, short plants that are the most productive determinate tomato I have ever grown!  Fruit weighs about 45g each, yielded over 10.8kg in 2018.  They are are very early cropping.  This was the first tomato that I ever bred and, although I am biased, I am rather fond of it.  Extremely large yields of round red golf ball sized tomatoes over a surprisingly long season for a determinate plant.   

Little Oak Like tomato small determinate tomato that produces red ping pong ball size tomatoes.  Very rich tomato taste.  Looks much like Igloo but slightly less stocky, a bit tastier and less productive.  Very early cropper great for areas with a short growing season.   

Micro Tom tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) the smallest variety of tomato in the world!  I have never had one grow over 10cm tall.  Being so small they can easily be grown in a cup of soil, easy for kids to grow, easy for elderly people who no longer have a garden, easy to grow in apartments if you have a sunny window, and great for school experiments due to its short life cycle   





Lacy Lady pea (Pisum sativum) white flowers, green pods, green peas, lots of tendrils.  These peas require little support, they are sweet, tasty and very productive.   A rare heirloom variety that I do not think is for sale any other place and is very close to extinction in Australia.  Peas will cross with other varieties of pea, snap pea, dry pea and snow pea so be a little careful if saving seed  

  
Golden Podded snow pea (Pisum sativum) a rare heirloom dating back to before the 1860s.  They have purple flowers, yellow pods, spotted seeds.  These peas grow tall and require support, they are beautiful and very productive.  Peas will cross with other varieties of pea, snap pea, dry pea and snow pea so be a little careful if saving seed  
 

Yellow Pear Tomato (Lycopersicon lycopersicum) a sweet, yellow, pear shaped cherry tomato.  This is an old and loved heirloom variety dating back to the 1700’s.  It was the first yellow tomato I ever grew and is by far my favourite.  It can grow to be a large plant if given support, it is very productive if treated well.  Beautiful, delicious, sweet and easy to grow, kids love the look and taste of the fruit.  Heirloom tomato can and will cross with other varieties of heirloom tomato so be a little careful if saving seed 

Reisetomate Tomato (Lycopersicon lycopersicum) extremely rare and ancient Peruvian heirloom that likely predates the Columbian conquest of South America.  Bizarre, unique red fruit which can be pulled apart and eaten like the segments of an orange.  It has a distinctive, deep and intense flavour that I love but may not be sweet enough for some kids.  This is easily my favourite red tomato variety.  This tomato will cross with other varieties of tomato so take care if saving seed  

 Tomatillo "purple and green" (Physalis ixocarpa) a rare and beautiful heirloom tomatillo with slightly sweeter fruit than regular green tomatillo.  Some plants will develop green fruit, others will be purple while others will have a mix of both and all of them will make a nice looking salsa.  Grows a thin papery husk which helps prevent fruit fly attack.  'Purple and green' tomatillo is very productive and prolific.  Grow more than one plant to increase fruit set, I grow several plants in the one hole to save space.  Tomatillo will cross with other varieties of tomatillo so be careful if saving seed  


Garlic Chives (Allium tuberosum) easy to grow from seed, perennial plants also divides to reproduce.  The flat leaves impart a nice garlic flavour in meals.  The flowers are very attractive to bees and other insect pollinators.  Easy to save seed from these as it will only cross with other varieties of garlic chives (if any other varieties actually exist)  

Yin Yang bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) is a short bean plant that can be used as a green bean if picked early but is mostly used as a dry bean for soup etc.  They are one of the most beautiful looking beans, not to be confused with 'frost beans' which are a different variety.   Limited numbers  

Crimson Flowered Broad Bean (Vica faba) dating back to at least 1778 this rare heirloom broad bean is covered in deliciously scented red flowers.  I am told it tastes better than other varieties.  Broad beans will cross pollinate with other varieties of broad bean so take care if saving seed.   

Skirret (Sium sisarum) very rare, endangered and ancient perennial root crop which is simple to grow.  Sweet roots taste like a delicious sweet potato or parsnip.  Used in any dish that calls for potato, carrot or parsnip.  Leaves can be added to salads but it is the sweet roots that are the main crop here.  Flowers attract many beneficial insects to your garden.  Unlike many other perennial vegetables, seed grown plants will produce a crop, divide numerously, flower, and set seed the first year  Packets of tiny seeds

Kaempw Melon Rilon pumpkins (most likely Cucurbita maxima) this heirloom variety produces multiple large pumpkins.  They are hardy, extremely productive, versatile, easy to skin, and utterly delicious.  Soft orange flesh is great for soup, roasts, scones, slice etc. They set down roots at every node and ripen fast for a large pumpkin.  This variety needs dedicated seed savers.  Pumpkins will cross pollinate with other pumpkins of the same species so great care must be taken is saving seed  

Hangjiao #5 Space Chilli (Capsicum annuum) it is fun to eat “space vegetables”, but these are more than just an interesting novelty.  Starting in the 1980’s the Chinese government has sent hundreds of kilograms of seeds, consisting of millions upon millions of individual seeds, into space.  The seeds that returned had various space mutations.  Out of the millions of millions of mutated seeds that have returned only 10 chillies have been deemed worthy and kept, and this is one of those!  Space chilli are very productive and undemanding, producing large attractive ~20cm pods that are evenly red on reasonably compact plants.  They are sweet and crunchy and not overly hot so can be enjoyed by all, often described as having apple peel sweetness or tasting like juicy pea pods.  Chillies will cross with other chillies so take care if seed saving   

Trinidad Scorpion Butch T (Capsicum chinese) were the Guinness world record hottest chilli rated with over 1.47 million scoville heat units.  To put this in perspective, pepper spray used by correctional facilities is rated 0.5 million to 2 million scoville heat units.  These chillies are incapacitatingly hot, so don’t feed them to children or pets!  Most super hot chillies have extreme heat and lack any real taste.  Trinidad Scorpion Butch T are the exception to this rule, they have amazing taste and smell divine, they also burn hotter than you could imagine.  I normally cut a tiny piece, perhaps only 4 mm square, into a bowl of stew and that is enough to heat the entire meal to my upper heat limit.  If you are a foodie you need to try these as they taste fruity like nothing you have ever eaten before.  Forget keeping up with the Joneses, let them try to keep up with you!  Chillies will cross with other chillies so take care if seed saving   

Superior Coriander (Coriandrum sativum) mixed seeds of around a dozen varieties including 'slow bolt', 'long standing', and 'Bengal Giant'.  This is an excellent producer of both leaves and seeds.  There has been deliberate crossing of varieties so you will have great genetic diversity and be able to breed a superior variety that performs well in your garden.  Cull plants that flower early and only save seed from later flowering plants to quickly and easily develop your own variety that is is slow to flower and produces abundant leaves   

Potato Onion (Allium cepa var. aggregatum) true seeds.  These are seeds of potato onions, not plants/bulbs.  These have been open pollinated and the seed parent produced large bulbs that store well and divide nicely.  Every seedling from this mix will be unique, they will produce various colours and sizes.  If you grow one you like then allow the bulb to divide and you have your own unique variety that you can name!  

Tree onion (Allium × proliferum) true seeds.  These are seeds of tree onions, not the bulbils/plants.  These have been open pollinated and will produce seedlings with high levels of genetic diversity.  Some will produce topsets like the parent, some won't, but every seedling will be unique.  These should mostly be perennial so once you grow one you like you can divide it and keep growing it forever.  


Cape Gooseberries (Physalis peruviana) is also known as Incaberry, goldenberry, pichuberry, and a few other common names. Highly productive plants producing over one kilogram of small ~2g fruits that are covered with a protective paper husk. The fruits fall from the plant when ripe. For me they take a little over 80 days from planting the seed until eating perfectly ripe berries  

Hillbilly tomato has firm flesh that is reasonably dry and somehow smells fruity.   Produces a medium yield of glossy fruit over the season, it has regular leaf and is indeterminate.  

Cherokee Purple grows large tomatoes, some round, some a little odd shaped.  People often say this tomato has a smoky taste or taste of good red wine.  A little salt adds more depth to their taste - Unbelievable!  This plant produces a medium to large yield of large fruit, it has regular leaf and is indeterminate.  




Japanese Black Trifle (spelled various ways,  originally called "Yaponskiy Trufel Chernyi" or in Russian "Японский трюфель черный").  This old Russian variety has a deep, rich, sweet, tomato taste that is difficult to describe but easy to remember.  One of my all time favourite tomatoes.  Japanese Black Trifele tomato has potato leaf and is indeterminate.  

 

 Helsing Junction Blues are a great high anthocyanin cherry tomatoes.  These taste sweet and are very productive.  The unripe fruit is bright purple, only goes blue/black where the sun hits and stays red when shaded by a leaf so you can make patterns using stencils.  Ripe fruit is red with black where it used to be purple.  Plants have regular leaf and are indeterminate.  

 
Tommy Toe tomatoes (I didn't take a photo) grow into a large plant with high yields of small tomatoes.  An excellent tomato for back yard growing due to their rich tomato taste, abundant yield, and pretty red cherry tomatoes.  One of the more common varieties I grow.  Plants have regular leaf and are indeterminate.  

Sarah's Galapagos tomatoes are a large plant, high yields of small red cherry tomatoes.  They have a surprisingly deep rich taste for such tiny fruit.  It is said to be originally found on Galapagos Islands where they were eaten and dispersed by tortoises.  Plants have regular leaf and are indeterminate.  

Giant Parsley (Petroselinum crispum) is an absolutely massive strain of flat leaf parsley that is very simple to grow.  Leaves can be used as vegetable or herb, petioles can be used in place of celery, roots are delicious roasted.  Contains wide genetics and will produce a diverse population containing some stunningly massive plants.  If allowed to flower it will attract many beneficial insects and pollinators, and will gladly self seed.  

Dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) produces incredibly large plants from improved parent stock.  Dandelion leaves are more nutritious than most vegetables, the thick long roots can be roasted or turned into delicious coffee substitute, flowers are edible.  Poultry and livestock love to eat dandelions.  Deep tap roots mine minerals from deep in the soil, leaves can be used as compost activators.  They are great companion plants for most fruits and vegetables.  The flowers are pretty and kids love to blow the seed heads.   

Papalo (Porophyllum sp) also known as 'butterfly leaf', 'Mexican Coriander', and 'Papaloquelite'.  Papalo is a rare edible herb that is simple to grow over summer and has a unique and intense smell/taste.  Said to taste like a mix of coriander, cucumber, arugula and lime, but I think the smell is indescribable and intense.  The leaves are round and flutter in the wind, they have easy to see oil glands.  Papalo is my favourite herb.  Germination rates are often low and I am told that leaving the fluff on the seed increases germination.  For this reason I don't clean the seed, but sell one flower of seeds, I am not sure how many are in there.  

Quillquiña (Porophyllum sp) is an ancient and virtually unheard of herb in Australia.  It is similar in smell and taste to papalo, but has thinner leaves.  This is simple to grow, loves the heat of summer, and will not bolt to seed.  It is used in many dishes instead of coriander leaf, yet to me has a different smell.  Much like papalo I am told that leaving the fluff attached to the seeds will increase germination rates.  For this reason I don't clean the seed, but sell one flower of seeds, I am not sure how many are in there.  

Amaranthus caudatus has many common names such as love-lies-bleeding, pendant amaranth, tassel flower, velvet flower, foxtail amaranth, and quilete.  This is often grown as an ornamental but the leaves can be eaten as a vegetable and the seeds can be eaten as a grain.  Apparently leaves have two to three times the nutritional value of most leaf vegetables.  High in protein, high in vitamins, mild taste, easy to grow, has low water needs, few/no pests or diseases, and drastically beautiful - what is not to love!  There is a little chaff in with my seeds but that doesn't alter the high rate of germination.  

Rhubarb "Champagne Giant" (Rheum x hybridum) is a large and extremely delicious rhubarb variety.  The long red/green stems have the finest flavour of any rhubarb.  Very vigorous, most years divides into numerous crowns.  Seed grown rhubarb never grows true to type and demonstrates some genetic variation.  You will not grow "Champagne Giant" rhubarb from seed - you will grow a mix of delicious giant rhubarb plants that are all superior to most varieties you have ever eaten.   

Wasabi salad herb (Diplotaxis erucoides) is a leaf vegetable/herb that is far simpler to grow than true wasabi, tastes similar to wasabi, gives a similar nose tingling feeling as wasabi, and lacks the extreme heat of true wasabi.  Great in salads and on sandwiches.  It happily self seeds in my garden, sometimes pops up in my lawn, and is low/no maintenance.  It is excellent bee forage which can form a self sustaining patch that flowers all year  




Organically grown Berry Plants

Just like the perennial vegetables, I sell organic berry plants bare rooted.

Atilla Alpine Strawberry (Fragaria vesca) is a red fruited wild strawberry that is day length neutral.  It is an extremely rare alpine strawberry that produces runners and can form an edible ground cover.  The strawberries are much smaller than supermarket strawberries, but they taste meltingly delicious and they smell truly amazing.  If you have never eaten a wild strawberry you don't know what you are missing.  Alpine strawberries are also known as gourmet strawberries or fraise des bois.   

 

Pineberry strawberry produces small white berries with red seeds.  They get a pinkish blush when ripe and taste a bit like pineapple.  These only produce female plants, so need another strawberry to pollinate them and they never grow true from seed.  It crops twice per year in my garden.  Throws a lot of runners  $5 per plant

Virginian strawberry (Fragaria virginiana) are a species of wild strawberries from North America.  They taste similar to garden strawberries you can buy from the markets but with far more intense and sweet flavour.  These have been selectively bred for larger sized berries as wild plants produce tiny berries.  Berries have deeply set seeds.  Grows lots of runners, flowers twice per year in my garden.  Very hardy plants   $5 per plant 

Chilean guava (Ugni molinae) are an evergreen shrub that  produces delightful pea sized berries from their second year onwards.  They would work well in an ornamental garden as they are pretty, but the sweet, intensely fragrant berries are the real reason to grow this plant.  Seems to prefer part shade.  

Thornless Primocane Red Raspberries (Rubus idaeus) This productive variety can be referred to as being autumn fruiting or everbearing.  It can either produce one crop in autumn, or two crops: one crop in summer and a second crop in autumn, depending on how you want to prune.  Being thornless makes harvest simple, even for the kids!  Like most raspberry varieties this will spread underground and provide you with extra plants each year.  Thornless raspberries that can produce two delicious crops each year are ideal for backyard gardeners.  If you have never tasted fresh raspberries off your own plants then you don't know what you have been missing (berries from the market are not the same). 

Golden raspberries are a yellow fruited form of red raspberry (Rubus idaeus).  Yellow raspberries taste sweeter and more floral than red varieties.  They are extremely rare in Australia at the moment and we have very few varieties.  Golden raspberries are a thorny plant that is best described as being floricane or summer fruiting, it only flowers and fruits on last year’s growth.  They are self-fertile but if they are pollinated by a red raspberry or a blackberry this will not change the colour or the taste of the fruit.   Like most varieties of raspberries they spread by underground runners.   

Yellow Wonder alpine strawberry (Fragaria vesca) is a daylength neutral yellow or white fruited wild strawberry.  They fruit here most of the year.  Like most alpine strawberries they do not produce many runners.  Yellow wonder has an amazing taste that is a little like pineapple.  Alpine strawberries are also known as gourmet strawberries or fraise des bois.   


Regina alpine strawberry (Fragaria vesca) is a day length neutral wild strawberry.  They produce intensely sweet and richly flavoured strawberries that are smaller than supermarket strawberries but taste oh so much better.  Alpine strawberries are also known as gourmet strawberries or fraise des bois.   

Youngberry (Rubus sp) are a complex hybrid between raspberry, blackberry, and dewberry that are delicious.  Very vigorous plants.  This youngberry was meant to be thornless but has some small thorns.  Similar to boysenberry but is more productive and berries are smaller, darker, and more glossy.  They flower/fruit on floricanes.   




Organic Culinary Herb Plants

Unless started all herbs will have been grown from cuttings so that I can assure the quality of the plants, some herbs grow true to type from seed whereas others tend to be a little variable.  Most herbs (other than root cuttings, which are just a segment of root) are sold bare rooted, or with minimal soil on the roots to lower weight and reduce the postage cost.  Most will be wrapped in damp newspaper and put into a plastic zip lock bag.  Some may be dormant over winter and will not put on a lot of growth until Spring.  

I do not have large quantities of any herbs, if you want a larger quantity please ask me and I will let you know if I can help out.

Lemon Balm (Melissa officinalis) this useful herb is said to attract bees to the garden and has a delicate lemon flavour which gives it a wide culinary potential.  Useful in cooking to give a lemon taste and often used for making a calming tea.  It is said not to grow runners, but mine does.  Grown organically from cuttings as seeds grown plants tend to give varied and often undesirable traits.  

Lime Balm (Melissa officinalis "lime") a rare lime scented version of lemon balm.  It is said to attract bees to the garden and is meant to have a host of medicinal properties.  Useful in cooking to give a lime taste and also used for making a calming tea.  Kids love this lime smelling plant.  Confine it in a pot or it will take over your garden.  Grown organically from cuttings as seeds grown plants tend to give varied and often undesirable traits.  

Pineapple Sage (Salvia elegans) amazing pineapple scented leaves and red flowers.  I grow it in large pots as well as in the vegetable garden to repel pests.  This variety is the strongest scented and most vigorous pineapple sage I have seen.  Children love pineapple sage.  Useful in herbal tea, salads, drinks, and is delicious when cooked with poultry or meat.  
 

Common Spear Mint (Mentha spicata) this fragrant, strong smelling plant is one of the easiest and most rewarding herbs to grow.  Great plant to get children introduced to gardening and connected to the land.  Used to make mint sauce, garnish and in a host of different ways while cooking.  When I was a child it was grown in every garden, starting to become difficult to find for some reason.  Grown organically from cuttings as seeds can be variable and often give undesirable traits.  Grow in a pot to prevent it from taking over your garden   

Native Water Mint aka native rivermint, native peppermint (Mentha australis) this perennial Australian native herb is very rare in the bush and is rarely found in shops or gardens.  Flowers are great for native bees and other native pollinators.  It likes being well watered but can cope with reasonably dry soil.  It is used in much the same way as regular peppermint but is far less invasive and the small flowers are great for native pollinators.  It makes an excellent herbal tea served hot or iced  

Variegated Water Celery aka water parsley, Java waterdropwort, Japanese parsley, Chinese celery etc (Oenanthe javanica - flamingo)  is a perennial vegetable that is under utilised and strangely uncommon.  Extremely prolific and simple to grow.  Can be grown in the vegetable garden or as an emergent water plant.  Smells and tastes a lot like celery, add at the end of cooking or much of the taste will disappear   

Vietnamese Coriander aka Vietnamese mint, laksa herb, hot mint, Cambodian mint, praew leaf (Persicaria odorata) is an amazing herb.  Simple to grow, extremely productive, delicious and versatile.  The internet says Vietnamese coriander has a  “lovely coriander taste with a clear citrus note; refreshing with a hot, biting, peppery after taste”.  I grow as an emergent water plant but also happily grows in vegetable garden.  It goes well with chicken and I am told that it combines well with lime, chillies, garlic, ginger and lemon grass, what is not to love about this plant!   

Vietnamese Fish Mint (Houttuynia cordata) also known as dokudami, 'poison blocking plant',  lizard tail, heartleaf, fishwort, bishop's weed, and a bunch of other names.  Commonly used in Vietnamese cooking, herbal tea, as well as a host of different traditional medicines.  It tastes like fish sauce.  I am selling small plants of the vigorous green form (the variegated version is known as chameleon plant and is prettier but less vigorous).  This plant can become invasive if planted in the garden so please restrict it to growing in a pot.  This plant has nice white flowers but does not appear to set viable seed   

Lemon Thyme (Thymus citriodorus) first described in 1811, there is controversy over if this is a species or a hybrid of several species but recent DNA analysis indicates it is a separate species.  Lovely lemon scent, goes well with chicken or fish dishes.  I have been growing this plant for at least 10 years, taking cuttings every few years will refresh it and prevent it getting too woody.  The more you pick the leaves the better it grows   

Variegated Lemon Thyme (Thymus citriodorus) similar to lemon thyme in every way but with variegated foliage.  It grows the occasional branch that is not variegated, please remove this to prevent the plant from reverting to all green.  Needs full sun or it loses variegation.  Like many other herbs regular harvests prevent it becoming woody and unproductive  



 

Orange Peel Thyme (often called Thymus nitidus but possibly a hybrid) hardy low growing herb that smells like a mix of spices.  Useful as a ground cover as it produces a low and dense mat.  Small hairy leaves can be used in salads, fish, chicken, soups etc

Jekka's thyme (Thymus sp) is the best culinary thyme.  It's an extremely vigorous growing edible thyme with relatively long green leaves.  This has a strong thyme smell and taste.  It is the most vigorous thyme I grow.  Taking cuttings every few years will refresh it and provide you with more plants.  

Tabor thyme (Thymus sp) has relatively large rounded leaves.  I really like this plant but it is nowhere near as vigorous as Jekka's thyme.  It has a strong thyme smell and taste. 

Lavender mint (Mentha piperita 'Lavendula') this edible mint smells like lavender!  I use it in herbal tea and my kids love it, it also goes well in cold summer drinks, and I am told it goes well with chicken and other white meats where it imparts a floral aroma.  Lilac flowers attract bees and butterflies.  Large almost fluffy leaves not only smell great they also look and feel nice.  Lavender mint is my second favourite variety of mint, and it is the most vigorous in growth so please grow it in a pot to prevent it taking over your garden  

Willow herb (Epilobium parviflorum).  Other common names include 'small flowered willow herb', 'hoary willowherb' and 'small flowered hairy willow herb'.  This is a perennial edible herb, the leaves can be added to a salad and eaten raw or cooked, or dried and used in herbal teas.  This herb has been used as medicine to treat prostate and kidney issues and to reduce tumor growth, there are a few studies indicating it could be effective in treating these ailments.  This plant loves water.  

Carnivorous Plants
I know this page is mostly for perennial vegetables and other organically grown edibles, but please don't get confused and start to eat your carnivorous plants!  At this stage I have a very limited selection of carnivorous plants, but this should expand in spring when I divide my plants.  I can post them bare rooted but I may be able to sell in pots if picked up.  I am also experimenting with posting leaf cuttings but this won't be ready for a while as I am not yet sure on the best way to do this.
 

Venus Flytrap (Dionaea muscipula) are the most famous and one of the most interesting of carnivorous plants.  They do best in areas with frosts but can be grown in frost free climates with care.  Never shut the traps with your finger and don't feed them unless you really know what you are doing.  At this stage I only have the typical form for sale but in the future I hope to be able to also offer a few named varieties.  I will update the photo when the plants are ready for sale   

Cape Sundew (Drosera capensis) possibly the easiest of all carnivorous plants to grow.  They were the first carnivorous plants I ever grew successfully as a child and from them I learned how to grow carnivorous plants.  These catch numerous flies, moths, and other insects.  Don't feed them unless you know what you are doing or you may kill the plant.  Grow them in peat moss (never soil) in a tray of water, never use fertilisers, and protect from frosts.    

Cape Sundew (Drosera capensis) seeds.  These carnivorous plants are surprisingly simple to grow from seed but very few places ever list seed for sale.  Simply place damp peatmoss in a small pot, keep a tray of water under at all times, and sprinkle the seeds on top.  Most seeds germinate in a few weeks, after they grow for a while they can be divided and potted on.  I only sell fresh seeds as they don't store well, so I update this when I have some ready.  This is a packet of tiny fresh seeds, the seeds are so small that several could fit on the full stop at the end of this sentence.  

Ancient cultures

Milk kefir grains: this is a living, reusable, traditional heirloom starter culture which dates back thousands of years.  Save money by making healthy probiotic milk kefir at home.  It ends up very similar to a drinking yogurt, but far simpler to make and much more beneficial for your health.  My grains have an extremely diverse profile probiotics that is vastly superior to supermarket kefir or starter sachets.  They have been growing in A2 milk and multiply well in warmer weather.  Milk kefir is extremely simple to make using grains.  I can send you instructions and provide advice via email if required.   $5 per spoon full 

Ornamental - non-edible plants or seeds

String of Pearls plant (Senecio rowleyanus).  Very simple to grow and very beautiful.  They grow tiny white flowers that smell nice.  Grow them somewhere that they can trail over the side of their pot.  When you receive the cutting please remove the lower few pearls (leaves), plant the stem in soil and water it well.  These are ornamental only, please never eat any part of them   

Muscari seeds (Muscari armeniacum) also known as grape hyacinth, are a spring flowering bulb that produces sweetly fragrant blue flowers, sometimes blue and white, or even just white.  Simple to grow, naturalises well, loved by honey bees, and dies down over summer so is water wise. Simple to grow from seed but won't flower the first year.  Seeds are far cheaper than bulbs so you get more plants for your money, but they take longer to flower.  Each seed grown plant will be genetically unique but most look similar to their siblings 

African Violet 'New Hampshire' is a lovely variety of African Violet.  It is compact and very vigorous producing many flowers on long stems, making it a great house plant.  New Hampshire is easy to grow for beginners and is a good choice for a gift.  It is a reliable producer of large, single flowers, in good numbers, over several months.  These will not be sent bare rooted, and will be sent in a pot.  

Candle Making

I have seen these candles for sale for up to $13, with $9 each being about average, so buying a mould and making some of your own works out well.  If you enjoy it you can get more wax and make more candles, or experiment with fragrances and essential oils etc.

Candle making mould - skep

These produce really cute little beehive candles with bees on them.  I use around 40g to 50g of wax.  One silicone skep mould can be used to make hundreds of  candles, and I can provide simple instructions  $10 for the mould

Note: candle not included, you are buying a pink silicone mould to make your own candles

 

Candle making kit - owl
This mould is easy to use and produces little owl candles with an incredible amount of detail.  Candle making is a great project to do with kids on a rainy day.  The price is for one owl silicone mould can be used to make hundreds of candles,  and I can provide simple instructions $10 for the mould 
Note: candle not included, you are buying a pink silicone mould to make your own candles

 

1 Corinthians 3:6-7  I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow.  So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.

African violet leaf damage

I have always heard that people tend to water African violets from underneath.  The reason is that any water that splashes on the leaf may make spots.  

Watering African violets from underneath to prevent spots is good advice that is given to people who are new to African violets.  Strangely enough, I have never seen a photo of these spotty leaves.  If you are new to African violets you probably want to see the thing you are trying to avoid - I know I do.  The first time I saw it was when one of my plants was damaged.  I thought I would share this so other new growers know what people are talking about. 

I have some African violets growing outside.  They are under shelter and get an hour or so of direct sun at sunrise, then bright shade the rest of the day.  I find they grow very fast out there over the warmer months, partly because of the lighting, and partly because it gets rather warm.  I think the air movement in the spot I have them is good for them.  

One afternoon we had a storm.  Normally I bring the tray of African violets inside when there is a storm, but this time I didn't.  Some water splashed on the leaves.  Not long after that the damage became very noticeable.  

African violet spotty leaf

The damage is pretty noticeable

There is no way to fix the damaged leaf.  Once it is damaged, it stays damaged.  That is why people tend to water African violets from below.  When watering from below they don't accidentally splash a leaf and cause spots.  Makes sense to me.  

You could cut off the damaged leaf, or you could leave it on the plant.  If you remove the leaf you can plant it and use it to grow new plants, so all is not lost.  If you decide to leave it, it does not get better, the spots don't go away, but it doesn't take too long before the plant produces new leaves and you forget where the damaged ones are.  

The photo below is of the same pot not too long after the above photos were taken.  The spotty leaves are still there, but new leaves have grown and cover them.

The same plant, the spotty leaf is there somewhere

The same plant, the spotty leaf is lower/middle of the photo

Given these are ornamental plants, I want them to look nice.  I do not like the look of the spotty leaves.  Vegetables can be as ugly as they want as long as they are tasty.  Plants with fragrant flowers can be somewhat ugly if they smell nice.  African violets only have their looks, so I do not want them to have spotty leaves.  

So now I know what happens when cold water splashes on African violet leaves.  I now know what it looks like, I know that I don't like the look of it, and I know once the damage is done it never fixes itself.  

I grow some African violets in wicking self-watering pots.  These are simple to use and prevent any spots on the leaves.  I grow cuttings and seedlings in pots that are not wicking, so I will either have to be careful not to splash water on the leaves, or try to water from underneath.  

Trampoline ferns

Last spring or summer I found a tiny baby fern growing under the trampoline.  There was only one growing there, I looked carefully to see if there were any other tiny ferns or prothalli, but there were none to be seen. 

It gets dry under the trampoline over summer, it gets icy over winter, and I didn't want it to die, so I dug it up and planted it in a pot.  I put this in my greenhouse.  I am told it is difficult to dig up ferns from the wild to transplant them, but I have always had great success with them.  This wasn't really growing 'in the wild', it was growing under my trampoline.  I am more careful than most people, and have a reasonable understanding of the fern's preferred growing conditions, so that probably helps with my success rates.  

The baby fern grew well, and survived winter with no visible damage.  It started to reach a nice little size, and I was excited to see how it grew once the warmer weather began.  Then, one night in spring, rats or mice came into my greenhouse from the paddock next to us and ate the fern to a stump.  

We have mice and sometimes rats come in from the paddock several times per year, often when the seasons change.  I put out bait to control the rats or mice, the bait was taken every night as soon as I put it out.  

The fern started to recover and then was eaten to a stump again.  Sadly, it died after being eaten to the ground the second time.  Not long after that I got on top of the rodent problem.  I wish I protected it better.  

trampoline fern looking healthy

Growing in part shade in the greenhouse

baby fern after I had grown it for a while

This past summer I noticed another fern growing under the trampoline in much the same position as the one I dug up earlier.  I looked carefully and noticed what may be prothalli, or perhaps liverworts.  I then started to water this area to help the ferns survive.  

This summer has been dry, so the ferns needed a lot of watering.  One trampoline fern is getting reasonably  large, another one is smaller, and there appear to be two other tiny ones.

The larger trampoline fern

Second largest trampoline fern

I don't know what type of ferns these are, and am not sure if they will survive winter under the trampoline as it gets a little frosty here.  

I would dig up one and put it in a pot in my greenhouse, but worry that it may be eaten to death in spring when the mouse numbers increase.  Perhaps it is best if I don't intervene (other than to water them, and to reduce competition by removing weeds and grass from time to time).

Hopefully at least one of these survives long term.  When they get larger I may be able to identify them, but for now they are mystery ferns. 

All the ferns are in this photo, some are too small to be seen

Trampoline fern and weeds

I'm not sure where these ferns came from.  A while ago I brought home a fertile frond from a tree fern but never got around to planting the spores, perhaps these ferns grew from spores that came from that frond.  Perhaps someone nearby has an exotic fern that shed spores to the wind.  Perhaps this is a native fern whose mother is growing near the stream down the road.  I don't know, all I know is that this is the only spot in my yard that is growing ferns.  

I look forward to this getting larger and possibly being able to identify it one day.  I don't really care what type of fern it is, I am happy for it to be growing in my yard. 

If I can keep a self-sustaining population of these ferns under my trampoline that would be nice.  It would be nice if they spread under the trampoline and competed with the grass and weeds that grow there.  If that isn't possible, I would like to grow some in pots.  

For now I will leave them, and water them, and see wat happens.  I would hate to dig up another, only to have it eaten to death by mice or rats.  

I like ferns, and I like plants that appear out of nowhere, these little plants tick both of those boxes.  

Milk kefir from grains vs sachets comparison

Years ago I had milk kefir grains.  We made kefir most days, and we did this for years.  Other than the cost of the milk, it was very cheap.  

Making milk kefir from grains is very simple.  You put some kefir grains in milk, leave for a day or so, then strain the grains out and drink the liquid.  It doesn't get a lot simpler than that.  

I'm no expert when it comes to kefir, but I don't need to be.  For some reason, people try to make kefir making more expensive, and to appear more complicated, than it needs to be.  For centuries kefir was made by nomadic people, they put milk kefir grains in a goat skin or horse skin bag and added some milk.  Later they drank some of the liquid and added more milk.  Nothing was precise, and this went so well that it was kept up for generations.  

Milk kefir is demonstrated to have a lot of health benefits, so it is worth drinking if you like the taste.  I have heard a lot about kefir starter satchels, I have also seen bottled kefir for sale in supermarkets, so I did some research to compare them with kefir made from grains and thought I would share what I found. 

Milk kefir grains

I read about store bought kefir not being 'real' kefir, so I did a little research.  Supermarket kefir is a poor version that pales in comparison to the real thing, but is far more uniform than real kefir.  It is made by adding a small number of isolated cultures to milk.  This results in a drink that is very uniform and consistent.  

Real kefir made from grains contains a lot more probiotic cultures, both in terms of overall numbers as well as diversity of different cultures.  My kefir is never uniform, it is slightly different day to day, and it changes with the season.  

Store bought kefir is meant to be slightly healthier than store bought yogurt.  I found the image below on a website.  The claims they are making look good, but are rather unimpressive when compared to milk kefir made using grains.  I will explain this further down the page.

Store bought kefir vs yogurt image from https://lifewaykefir.com/kefir-vs-yogurt/

Kefir from the supermarket is expensive, and is an ongoing cost.  You buy it, drink it, and buy some more.  Kefir from grains still has an ongoing cost, but it is much lower.  You buy grains, then the ongoing cost is buying milk to make more kefir.  

Based on the anecdotal evidence above, if you want something that is the same every time then store bought is best.  If you are consuming kefir for health benefits, or if cost is an issue, then making it from milk kefir grains is the far better option.  

Milk kefir

I have also seen satchels of 'kefir starter' for sale.  These are very expensive, and I have heard they are inferior to kefir made from grains.  I was curious about them so I did a little research to compare them to grains. 

Starter sachets, contain very few species of beneficial bacteria and yeasts.  I found one product that claims to only have 5 strains and even the 'good' brands claim to only contain 7.  While this is better than most yogurts which usually have only 1 or 2 strains (some can have up to half a dozen), part of the reason people drink kefir is because it contains a lot of different probiotic cultures.  

Home made kefir using grains contains far more biota in terms of diversity of the species of microorganisms present.  While this number varies considerably, kefir has been recorded as having 41 species of bacteria and 37 yeasts (a total of 78 different species of microorganisms).  This is more than ten times the amount of species found in good starter sachets and more than six times as many as bottled kefir from the supermarket.  

Based on the above, if you want a lot of diversity in your probiotics, kefir grains is the better option.  

Milk kefir

Diversity is important, another thing to consider is the number of colony forming units.  This number is how many live microorganisms (of any kind) are in the end product.  This number is important because many will die on their way through your digestive tract.  The number of colony forming units in sachet made kefir or store bought kefir is often claimed to be a mere 1 billion to 2.5 billion colony forming units per cup.  This small number has been demonstrated to be far lower in real life than is claimed on packages.  For simplicity, let's assume that this exaggerated number is correct.  

Depending on which paper you read (including this paper and another paper), kefir made from grains is said to contain between 100 billion colony forming units per cup up to several trillion colony forming units per cup.  Even the lowest estimate is vastly more than the amount as sachet made or store bought kefir.  

Based on the above it seems if you want a lot of probiotics in your diet, using kefir grains is the better option.  

Kefir grains

Diversity of probiotics is important, as is the number of live colony forming units, another important consideration is cost.  

The supermarket sells a pack of 5 x sachets (which, after you also buy milk, is said to make up to 25L) for $53 plus the cost of milk.  Another brand which has 2 x sachets and claims to only contain 6 strains sells for a whopping $28 plus the cost of milk.  If you like the taste of satchel kefir, you need to keep buying satchels at this high price forever.  I have heard of people using sachet produced 'kefir' to inoculate milk in the hope of keeping this going long term, apparently it stops working after a few tries.

Milk kefir grains, on the other hand, can be used indefinitely to make as many batches of kefir as you want for the rest of your life.  The grains multiply over time, so you can make more kefir, or give some grains away, or eat some grains, or feed them to chickens, or bury them in the garden.  After the once off cost of grains, you buy milk, maybe a kitchen strainer every ten years, and there is no other cost.  

Financially, kefir grains are far cheaper than starter satchels or supermarket kefir both in the short term and far far cheaper in the medium and long term.  

I don't know how to photograph kefir

Taste is a personal thing.  My kefir can be rather yeasty at times, which I love, or hardly yeast at all at other times.  Satchel and store bought tend not to include yeasts so will not have much of that yeasty taste.  

My kefir tends to get a bit sour at times, perhaps more than I like.  A little honey fixes that.  I assume store bought or satchel would be far less sour as consumers prefer sweeter products.  

If you are drinking kefir because of its taste, I can't tell you which is better.  You need to try a bunch of types and make some from grains and go with the one you prefer.  

Milk Kefir and Water Kefir

If you like to drink milk kefir, it is absolutely worth making your own and seeing if you like that. Milk kefir made from grains is far healthier and far cheaper than store bought or made from satchels.  If you dislike the taste of kefir made with grains, or if you dislike that it is slightly different each batch, then stop making it and go back to buying it from the store.

I make milk kefir, and often have extra grains that I can post throughout Australia.  If you are interested, my contact details can be found on my for sale page. 

African violet leaf propagation in water

I grow a few African violets, I think they are nice little plants.  I tend to propagate them by leaf cuttings, and sometimes seeds or even flower stalks, and I usually have good success. 

I propagate them by planting a leaf in soil, and it tends to produce several leaf babies.  I don't use heat, or grow lights, or humidity domes, or hormones, or anything special.  I just cut it off, plant it, treat it like the parent plant, and it produces a few baby plants (albeit slowly).  

I keep hearing how simple African violets are to propagate by putting a leaf in water.  There are plenty of photos of this on the internet which make it look very simple and possibly faster than in soil. 

Growing African violets by putting a leaf in water is simple - yet for some unknown reason I can't do it! 

I propagated all these African violets

Propagating African violets is simple but takes me months, quite often longer than everyone says it should.  If propagating in water is faster I would like to do that.  Water propagation would also take less space than soil.  I can see a few benefits of this method. 

I have one variety that is reluctant to propagate, each time I attempted to propagate its leaf in water it rots.  I have another variety that is far more vigorous and propagates more easily, I figured this would be the one to try in water.  

I put a leaf in water in March 2024.  I set this on the kitchen windowsill next to the parent plant.  I top this up with water when it starts to get lower, and never let it run dry.  

This leaf has not produced any roots, it has not produced any leaf babies, and as of April 2025 it is still alive even though it hasn't really done much.  That is 12 months of sitting in water.  

I have no idea what I am doing wrong.  All the plants in the photos above are from leaf cuttings I grew by planting it in soil.  They are all the same variety as my water attempt, it is a vigorous and simple to grow variety.  I don't understand why I can't propagate them in water. 

Leaf cutting after 12 months

The cut end of the petiole started to callus, which I thought was a good sign, but has done nothing since then.  

I started to wonder if it was too hot or too cold in my house, or if the humidity was wrong.  I don't think that is the issue because plants grow well and leaf cuttings that are planted in soil all work.  

Also, given that this has been here for a year, it should have been through the correct temperature range at some stage.  

12 months, no roots, no leaf babies

The leaf itself still looks alive.  Perhaps it does not look as healthy as it did 12 months ago, but it is still firm and green.

You can see the mother plant in the background, it is blooming happily so the conditions can't be too bad.  If the mother plant has enough sunlight to bloom this well, the leaf cutting should have enough light to grow leaf babies.  If there wasn't enough light, or if there was too much direct light, the leaf should have died by now.  It is a mystery to me.

Leaf still looks healthy enough

While certainly not perfect, I don't think the conditions are too bad where this leaf is situated.  The mother plant is growing right next to this leaf, it blooms for months on end and generally looks great.  

To add to the mystery, more recently I took two leaf cuttings of the mother plant (and one from another plant) and have them in a pot of soil beside the leaf in water.  

I planted those leaves 27 January 2025, the first leaf babies popped up on 19 March 2025, about two months later.  During those two months the leaf in water sat there and didn't appear to change. 

African violet leaf cuttings in soil work well for me

I have no idea what I am doing wrong, and to be honest it doesn't matter too much.  I know propagating African violets in water is simple for many people, I also know that I can propagate them in soil pretty easily, so the fact that I can't propagate them in water doesn't change a great deal for me because I can still propagate these lovely plants. 

If you propagate African violet leaves in water and it works for you, keep doing that.  If you propagate African violet leaves in soil and that works for you, keep doing that.  If you propagate by wrapping the stem in damp paper towel and that works for you, keep doing that.  It doesn't matter too much what doesn't work, as long as at least one method does work for you. 

I plan to keep this leaf in water until it dies or produces baby plants.  It isn't taking much room, and isn't taking too much effort, so I may as well leave it to the bitter end.  Edit to add: My leaf died in September 2025.  For a year and a half it sat in water, and did nothing.

Propagating African violets by planting leaves or flower stems in soil works well for me, so I will continue to do it this way.  The fact that I can't propagate them in water is no great loss.  

On occasion I list African violets or African violet leaves on my for sale page.  I don't have a lot of types, and don't usually have many extra plants, but if you are interested it is worth a look.  

No more anonymous comments

I received a few emails recently from people saying they were unable to leave comments on my blog.  I'm sorry about this but there is no other way.  A few weeks ago I changed a few settings on my blog and removed the ability to leave anonymous comments.  If you can't leave a comment but have something you would like to say, my email address can be found on my for sale page.  

Sadly, I have to prevent anonymous comments because I am no longer willing to put up with the threatening and hateful comments that are being written by the leadership team of a church we left several years ago.  

After leaving that church, from time to time I would get a bunch of threatening comments left on this blog.  Some tell me to die, others tell me to kill myself, some call me an idiot, others ask me what authority I have to write anything.  They are unpleasant, but no one but me sees them, and I delete them.  I never thought too much about who may be writing these comments.  An example of the messages can be seen below. 

One of the many nasty comments left by church leadership

Lately, when these comments are left someone also unsuccessfully tries to hack into my email, paypal, and other accounts.  The comments were all 'anonymous', but nothing is truly anonymous nowadays.  

The timing of the last set of comments and log in attempts made me curious.  I don't know why I wasn't curious earlier, and I feel like a fool for being so trusting. 

I work with investigators and cyber security experts, so I asked if they could tell me more about these comments and unsuccessful log in attempts.  They did whatever it is that cyber security people do, then they told me that the attempted log ins had originated from the town our previous church is in, and they gave me a few other details that link this to the leadership of our previous church.  I feel naive for not realising earlier that these comments were made by the leadership team of our previous church.  

A few things happened over the past few years that really should have tipped me off as to who was writing these hateful comments, but I never joined the dots.  It is frustrating that five years after leaving I am still being harassed by the leaders of our previous church.  Their ongoing actions say a lot about them.  I guess the lesson here is you should never give church leadership the benefit of the doubt.  

If you are considering going to a church, be careful.  Make sure that you can leave if you chose to do so.  Some churches are great, others less so, and some like my previous church cross the line from being controlling and toxic churches into being manipulative cults that will harass you if you ever leave.  

If you have a google account, you will still be able to leave a comment on this blog.  If you can't leave a comment on my blog, feel free to reach out via email.  My email address can be found on my for sale page. 

Baby lizards hatching

The other day I was doing something in the garden and I moved a pot that was filled with soil.  Under the pot were a few tiny lizard eggs.  

I could not replace the pot in fear of squashing all the eggs, and I could not leave the eggs uncovered without them being eaten by birds.  I worried that I had killed these lizards before they even had a chance to hatch.  Sorry lizards, I wouldn't have touched that pot had I thought there were eggs under there. 

I carefully collected the eggs and put them in a small container of cocopeat and hoped they would hatch.  One of the eggs was damaged when I lifted the pot and clear fluid was oozing out, I was pretty sure it was beyond hope, the other eggs looked good and probably still had a small chance of survival.  

Reptile eggs are different from bird eggs, they must be handled differently or you will kill the baby.  Chicken eggs need to be tilted/rotated/rolled to ensure the embryo develops properly.  If you roll a reptile egg the baby will often die.  In a chicken egg the embryo attaches to the air space at the fat end of the egg, no matter which may you roll the egg the baby can breathe.  A reptile embryo tends to float and attach to the top of the egg, if you roll the egg the baby may drown.  I knew this, and I was careful of the tiny eggs.  Even so, a lot could go wrong, and I had a bad feeling about this.

Tiny baby skink

I put a piece of bark over the eggs to protect them.  At first it was too dry and the eggs started to shrivel, so I started to mist the substrate with water.  The eggs plumped up again.  I worried that this shriveling had destroyed any chance these eggs had of hatching, but there was a small chance I got onto this in time. 

After a few weeks, one tiny skink hatched out of a tiny egg.  It was very exciting.  The baby skink was tiny and adorable.  

We kept it for a day or two, and then released it in the vegetable garden close to where I collected the eggs.  The baby lizard will have plenty of shelter, and access to food.  

The kids were a mix of sad to see it go, and thrilled that they hatched a lizard.  

Baby skink being set free

I was relieved that at least one egg hatched.  I still felt bad, but at least I had not killed them all. 

A day or two after releasing that baby lizard a second tiny lizard egg hatched.  Again this was exciting, and we kept it for a day or two so the kids could stare at this tiny and remarkable creature.

When we were letting the baby free we noticed a third egg had also hatched!  

We released the third lizard along with the second one, they were released in the vegetable garden just next to where I got all the eggs from.  They have plenty of food, and plenty of places to hide from predators.  

Baby lizard soon after hatching

Tiny baby lizard

The day after we released those two lizards, another one hatched!  

I was worried when I lifted the pot that I may have doomed those poor eggs, but I am happy to say that most survived.  Only the one damaged egg that was oozing liquid did not make it, all the others hatched.  

Having four hatch and being able to release them was a great result, far better than I had expected.  These four baby lizards now live in my garden, and will eat insects and/or be eaten by birds.  From here they will do whatever nature intends.  

I love how excited my kids were at seeing the tiny lizards, and I am love that (while my kids wanted to keep the lizards forever) they were willing to release them. 

Simple Kombucha continuous brew recipe

Very simple Kombucha (чайный гриб) continuous brew recipe 

I wrote an earlier blog post on kombucha SCOBY and described what a scoby is compared to the pellicle and starter liquid.  That post started to get a little long so I decided to stop there and write a separate post on the kombucha recipe we use.  

There are plenty of kombucha recipes on the internet.  They pretty much all work because it is actually hard to go wrong brewing kombucha when you use both pellicle and starter liquid.  Making kombucha at home is simple and cheap.  

I am not suggesting that the way I brew kombucha is the best way to do it, or even a good way to do it, I am only saying it is simple and it never goes wrong.  This blog post is partly a way for me to record this in case I ever forget how to do this in the future. 

Continuous brew чайный гриб

I tend to do continuous brew rather than messing around with batches and bottling and using fridge space.  Continuous brew works for me, and it never goes wrong.  I don't even see how it could go wrong.  Plus it takes very little time and effort. 

Some people prefer batch brewing.  I hear about these going wrong from time to time.  I can't offer any advice on batch brewing or adding flavouring to kombucha, because I don't do any of that.  

Continuous brew and batch brew are both good methods, which one to use is more about personal preference than anything else.  The scoby likely doesn't care if you do continuous brew or batch brew, you could try both and see what you prefer.  

Kombucha ready to drink

Kombucha looks like beer or apple cider

I have a large glass jar with a tap.  This jar contains one or more pellicles and plenty of finished kombucha/starter liquid.  

I drew two lines on the jar, one at 4 liters, the other at 6 liters.  I fill it up to the 6L line, we drink it as wanted and I refill it once it drops to the 4L line.  

It is simple, and a little inconsistent, but can never fail unless there is some mechanical failure such as the jar gets smashed or the tap falls out.  

I don't put the lid on the jar as the scoby needs some air.  Instead I tend to keep a cloth on top of the jar, this keeps out insects and dust.  I used to hold the cloth on with a rubber band, but stopped bothering with that a few years ago and the cloth just sitting on top does the trick.  

Continuous brew чайный гриб recipe

Once we drink enough that the liquid drops to the 4L line I fill it with sweet tea that has cooled.  Never use hot tea as this will kill (or at least damage) the scoby. 

1. I have about 4L of kombucha liquid in my jar.
2. I boil 2L of water, add 1/2 cup white sugar, and 2 or 3 tea bags.  I mostly use regular black tea bags, but sometimes also include a bag of green tea.  
3. I let this steep for about 5 to 15 minutes, then remove the tea bags.  
4. I let this cool to room temperature.  
5. Once cooled I pour this sweet tea in my jar that already has kombucha mentioned in step 1.  It is ready to drink in a few days (or immediately if you prefer it sweeter).  

Let me stress that I always allow it to cool before adding it to my jar, never add this when still hot or it will kill the scoby.  

Some people use more sugar while others use less sugar, some people use more tea bags others use less tea bags.  Sometimes I use some black tea and include some green tea, other times I only use black tea.  I use tea bags so I don't have to strain out any leaves, using loose leaf tea would also be fine as long as you can strain out the leaves.  

If I go away for a while I just fill up the jar and it is fine when I return.  I don't have a lid on my jar so there is no risk of building too much pressure.  The contents of the jar are too acidic for most pathogens to survive, so there is no danger there.  A pantry moth or something could get in and I would have to deal with that, but that wouldn't ruin my culture and would be simple enough to deal with.

Continuous brew kombucha simply works.  You can't really go wrong as long as you let the tea cool before adding to the jar and the scoby is strong.  It doesn;t matter if your house is too cold, the continuous brew will never fail.  

Continuous brew kombucha, I keep a cloth on top 

My jar already has a pellicle, and 4L or so of starter, so it brews quickly and is ready to drink in next to no time.  I hear of other people having to wait two weeks before their brew is ready, they tend to use significantly less starter liquid than I do (or they made their starter using store bought kombucha).  I hear of other people having issues with mold when the temperature is too low, again they use far less starter liquid than I do and they usually do not also include the biofilm. 

Sometimes when we are drinking a lot of kombucha this drops a bit below the 4L line before I have a chance to refill it, that doesn't really matter.  Other times I refill before it reaches the line, again this doesn't really matter.  Over summer it brews a lot faster, over winter it brews far slower.  This is not a precise science, and it never goes wrong.  

Most recipes suggest adding a pellicle and 10% starter liquid to 90% tea, this works but is a lot slower than how I do it.  I use about 66% starter liquid and about 33% sweet tea, and it brews very fast.  We tend to drink some kombucha most days, so want to fill my jar and have it ready to drink as soon as possible.  Sometimes my kids drink it as soon as I filled it, I prefer to wait a few days as I like the sharper taste.

It usually has more bubbles

While my method may not be the best way to brew kombucha, the fact that I can keep a continuous brew going like this for a few years is testament to the fact that this method is working.  Perhaps there are better methods, but this works for me, and it is so simple and cheap. 

If you have a kombucha recipe that is different, and it works for you, please keep using it.  If you try one recipe and don't love it, then change it and try something different.  There are many websites out there with 'tricks' and kombucha 'hacks', but you don't need them as they generally overcomplicate things and introduce a lot of ways to fail.  One of the best parts of kombucha is nothing is precise, and you really can't fail.  

If you are new to brewing kombucha, it is difficult for anything to go wrong if you brew using both pellicle and starter liquid.  Some people discard the pellicle from every batch, which kind of works for them, but when first learning how to do this it is best to use the traditional method by including the pellicle as well as the starter liquid.  

чайный гриб has been brewed by people at home since at least the 1800s, it is simple, and it is inexpensive.  I have never used a heat mat, I don't have a thermometer, I don't measure the pH, nothing is overly precise, and nothing ever goes wrong.  At worst I leave it too long before drinking and it tastes a little too sour for my liking.  

If you want to try brewing kombucha at home, you could try using unflavoured kombucha from the shops.  This will likely have a significantly lower number of strains and you can't be certain it has not been pasturised (killing many of the bacteria and yeasts) prior to sale.  You are better off finding someone who brews kombucha and buying a scoby (not just a pellicle) from them.  If you can't find any locally, and you are located in Australia, my contact details can be found on my for sale page.  

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Edit to add: above I mention having the two lines on my jar.  I would make 2L sweetened tea and once it has cooled I would add it when the liquid in my kombucha jar dropped to the 4L line.  

Over summer we drank a lot of kombucha.  The jar is large, so I started adding 2L of sweetened tea once the liquid dropped to the 6L line.  

This means I have 8L total in the jar: 6L starter and 2L of new sweet tea.  This works even better, and now the brewing time is shorter.  

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Edit to also add: I also had someone ask why I add 2L of sweetened tea each time.  The answer is simple: my kettle holds 2L of water.  No need to make things harder than they need to be. 

While washing the dishes after dinner I boil the kettle, put sugar and tea bags in a jug, and tip in the kettle of boiled water.  I then wash up the dishes while the tea steeps.  I remove the tea bags when I finish washing the dishes, and then go do something else (ie allow the tea to cool).  Before I go to bed I tip the cooled tea into my kombucha jar.  

Making kombucha is simple, there is no need to even pretend it is difficult.  

Hedou micro dwarf bok choy

Hedou micro dwarf bok choy (Brassica rapa) is one of the smallest, and fastest growing, varieties of bok choy.  It is sometimes called an extra dwarf, or micro dwarf variety, and is far smaller than baby bok choy.

I recorded the number of days this takes to grow a few times, this little one takes about a month from planting the seed to harvesting full size plants, and takes about 10 weeks from planting the seed until the next seeds are ready for harvest.  

Hedou micro bok choy

Last winter I had a container of soil that I planned to grow something in during the warmer months.  I didn't think of using this for anything else until mid winter, and there was not a huge amount of time before I wanted to plant something else in there.  

Rather than leaving it empty over winter, I grew some hedou bok choy in there.  This had ample space for root growth, and could fit a lot of plants.  

Once they flowered and died I was able to plant some perennial buckwheat in the container.  This meant I got to eat some of these bok choy, I refreshed my seed stocks, and didn't have to tie up useable space growing this as the container would have otherwise just been empty.  This was a great use of (otherwise unused) space.

Micro bok choy

All varieties of Brassica rapa cross pollinate readily.  I didn't want to cross this with other bok choy or tokyo bekana.  For this reason I grow some Hedou bok extra dwarf choy in my garden, but don't let it go to seed.  

To ensure I keep my line pure, I grew some Hedou micro dwarf Bok Choy in my greenhouse and only collect seed from these plants.  Seed set is lower in the greenhouse as few pollinators live in there, and many are captured by my sundews.  The lack of pollinators also means the chances of cross pollination are incredibly low.  

Hedou micro bok choy

These plants grew very fast.  Some were culled/eaten, others were allowed to flower and set seed.

Even though my line is not crossed with any other variety, there is a chance to add some selective pressure.  I tend to cull heavily and only allow individuals to flower if they possess all the traits I want to see.

Even though these plants are tiny, I want strong vigorous plants.  Anything that appeared weak was culled.  I don't want weak genetics in my line. 

I grow everything organically so want my plants to have natural resistance to pests.  You will notice holes in many of the leaves, this is unavoidable.  Anything that was affected by a lot of pests was culled.  

Hedou bok choy grows taller when in flower, perhaps 40cm tall, some plants are taller than others.  The flowers are typical yellow brassica flowers.  

Some plants produce very few flowers, these were culled as I want my line to be fertile and simple to save seed from. 

Bok Choy Flowers

Hedou bok choy flowering

The plants allowed to flower and set seed all posses the traits I want to see in this line.  In this way I am keeping the line pure, and I am selecting for desirable traits.  

Seed saving is simple.  As they were pollinated in my greenhouse they would have pollinated one another and little to no crossing with other varieties could have occurred.  I allow the plants to grow and then die naturally.  Then I allow the seed pods to dry on the plant.  Eventually I collected the seeds to plant later.  

I certainly don't get a lot of seed when they are in the greenhouse due to the low numbers of pollinators, but the seed produced is pure and not contaminated with other varieties.  I try to hand pollinate some flowers, but I can't do as good a job as insects.

I sometimes sell seed of Hedou bok choy, as well as other vegetables, if you are interested they are listed on my for sale page.